What we do

UML Rotary provides humanitarian service and funding with these areas of focus:

Service Projects

As people of action, we do hands-on service work within our community. Our goal is to have at least one service project per month. Below are some examples. See our Calendar for what’s coming up next.

Thanksgiving Meal distribution with Good Sam Food Pantry
Breakfast with Santa for families with disabled family members at ARC of Chester County
Renovations for Ann’s Heart Community Center
Organizing medical supplly donations to overseas hospitals with Project CURE
Packing healthy meals for children in food-insecure communities with Rise Against Hunger
Planting and harvesting for the Chester County Food Bank
Funding and installing new LED lighting for Community Volunteers in Medicine
Cleanup for Home of the Sparrow shelter for women and children
Building movable fencing for Jenkins Arboretum
Maintenance for a preschool playground
Clothing drives
Donating Spanish-To-English dictionaries for children

Charitable Funding

We provide financial support to many outstanding organizations and projects that change lives and make a difference. Most of our giving is local to the Greater Philadelphia area. We also help globally as part of Rotary International. Here are examples of projects we fund: 

Local
~65% of funding

  • COVID relief program to help struggling families buy food and essentials
  • Food and clothing donations for kids and families in need
  • Cost-efficient LED lighting at a volunteer medical facility, providing brighter, more reliable light and saving $1000s/month in electricity costs
  • School supplies and Spanish-to-English dictionary donations
  • Funding for education programs, Youth Exchange programs, and scholarships
  • Support for disabled children and their loved ones
  • Upgrades and maintenance for community centers, daycare facilities, homeless shelters, and shelters for abused women and children
  • Mobile mammogram screenings

International
~35% of funding

  • Polio eradication
  • Life-changing cleft lip and palette/facial reconstruction surgeries
  • Shelter tents and essential supplies for disaster relief
  • Solar installation at a rural hospital with no access to reliable energy sources
  • Hunger relief and sustainable programs to provide nutrition, especially for children
  • Installing sustainable clean water and sanitation facilities
  • Wheelchair repair program that employs and trains disabled persons to provide the repair services
  • Libraries and books for children in impoverished areas

Fundraising

UML Rotary is an all-volunteer organization. All of our club’s operating expenses are fully-funded through dues paid by our members, so that 100% of our charity fundraising, including direct donations and all net proceeds from our fundraising events, goes to humanitarian services. We maintain a 501(c)(3) charitable fund with The Vanguard Group to ensure proper legal and fiduciary accountability.

Most of UML Rotary’s charitable funding comes from fundraising events such as:

Rotary Charity Golf Tournament, held in springtime at Waynesborough Country Club in Paoli, PA. We host dozens of golfers for a day of activities including lunch, 18-hole golf, contests, and dinner featuring charity raffles and auctions.

Chocolate + Cheer, held in the wintertime, is a virtual tasting of artisan chocolates, expertly paired with craft beer and wine.  Friday night fun on Zoom, as a seasoned Chocolatier, a Brewmeister, and a Sommelier discuss the nuances of each tasting and why the flavors were paired together. It’s a sweet and savory explosion for your taste buds!